Sunday, August 14, 2011

In the first and only article I've read by Friedman that doesn't somehow link cell phones, cameras and facebook to various political and environmental problems, "The World is Full" addresses the problem of raising food prices, gas prices, and global warming. Friedman claims they are all related in a big loop. The spike in food prices caused by global warming causes the arabs to increase gas prices which somehow leads to even higher food prices. Factories becoming more efficient and needing less people in them cause the need for a higher amount of factories to create more jobs which makes more global warming. Friedman also claims that the human population is using earth's resources at 150% the replenishable rate which means eventually the earth will not be able to support the current amount of humans. The solution Friedman presents? people will have to accept living with less and find ways to be more happy with less stuff. How anyone will convince super rich business men that they can live without as much nice stuff just like the less rich people I don't know but it's either that or "We allow collapse to overtake us".

In Friedman's post "The Bin Laden Decade" he addressed the damage done by Bin Laden to multiple countries, including America. Friedman relates the damage metaphorically as holes, only being dug deeper by the lack of political power. In the Arab countries who's governments ruled by fear, the people are no longer scared says Friedman, and in America, which was ruled by trust, the society is "more splintered than ever". I get the impression also, after reading two posts and and entire book of his, that he forces some relation to camera phones and social networking sites into everything he writes.

In Friedman's article "It Has to Start With Them" he talks about pulling out troops from afghanistan, and how the war is a hopeless front. But the part of the article I'm interested in is his idea that it has to be their own. When he says this he means that People will always work harder, and be more motivated in what they are doing if it is their own idea, not something suggested to them. he gives examples that most of the times that there has been improvement in the middle east, it is when they do something themselves without american intervention or support. Various rebellions, uprisings, or military withdrawals. Friedman also uses the rule of three to help convey his ideas when he says "When does the Middle East make you happy? How did the cold war end? What would Ronald Reagan do?"